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Between Wild and Ruin
-- BOOK TRAILER: EXCERPT: After walking through dense stands of pine trees, I follow the remnants of what may have been a trail toward the top of the mountain. Higher up, the pines and junipers dappling the mountainside grow taller, but there aren’t as many. As they thin, small gusts of wind whistle through the forest, echoing through the trees. Otherwise, the forest is completely silent. Closer to the top of the mountain, the rocky ground levels off and the land spreads across a plateau below the mountain’s peak. Unlike the forest, the plateau is more like a jungle, marked by thick hanging moss and clusters of tall, unidentifiable conifers. Trees stand like sentries several rows deep. Beyond them, fallen logs lie scattered among overgrown shrubs and boulders in circular bands like rings on a tree. I walk through it all, making my way past thick brush into a clearing. Fresh sap and damp earth assault my nose. Under bright sunlight, large, rough-cut slabs of glittery rock blanket the otherwise bare field. Some lie stacked on top of each other like the crumbling remains of a building. Awestruck, I circle the structure, running my fingers over what looks like a ruin. “Incredible, isn’t it?” A voice behind me sends my heart racing toward my throat. I jump, whipping around to find a young man leaning casually against a pine near the clearing’s perimeter, looking off to his left as though listening for something. Even in the shade, his face glows. He smiles, showing off teeth that gleam like snowflakes between perfect lips. Hair as dark as Liddy’s French roast coffee falls around his face in unruly waves. His features are angular but refined, and his high, rounded cheeks soften the striking juxtaposition. I blink, then blink again. Ruby. I rub my eyes. You’re hallucinating. But he’s still there, staring at me. While I gawk, he pushes himself off the tree. “Not many people make it up here.” He smiles broadly. A soft, purple-hued halo circles his golden irises, catching fire in the sunlight. They settle on me, and my heart stops, completely paralyzed by his faultless storybook features. I exhale, trying to swallow inconspicuously. “It’s definitely a hike.” “Who are you?” “Who am I?” I sputter. “Who are you?” “Leo.” He grins. “I’m Ruby.” “Ruby.” My name rolls off his tongue with a smooth “R” and a musical lilt. Somehow, he even manages to make it sound appealing. “First time up?” “Yes. We just moved to La Luna.” “La Luna,” he repeats. “Welcome.” “Thanks,” I mumble. Earth to Ruby, I mentally smack myself. Since when has any boy made you senseless? “You okay?” He smiles like he knows I’m not. Like he knows whyI’m not. “Do you want to sit down? The altitude can be a bitch if you’re not used to it.” “No. I mean, yes, I’m fine. No, I don’t want to sit down. You just really startled me. You should announce yourself next time.” “Next time?” “Next time you sneak up on somebody.” Leo raises a perfect dark eyebrow. “But then it wouldn’t be sneaking, would it?” My cheeks flush, and I suddenly want to drop through a hole in the ground. I choke out, “Ummm,” and something incoherent and then stare at my toes like they hold the keys to my future. 
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